FCC Report: ISPs Getting Closer to Advertised Speeds

For too long, the download/upload speeds advertised by ISPs fell far short of real-world performance, but things have been improving of late. According to the FCC’s “Measuring Broadband America” 2012 report, ISPs were delivering an average of 96% of advertised speeds during peak traffic times, which is up significantly from the 87% speed found in the the August 2011 report.

The good news doesn’t stop there; the report found that five ISPs were actually “routinely meeting or exceeding advertised rates”.

Average Peak Period and 24-Hour Sustained Download Speeds as a Percentage of Advertised, by Provider—April 2012 Test Data

Download speeds, broken down by technology, show that DSL on average hit 84% of advertised speeds, while cable managed 99% and fiber delivered a whopping 117%. (During peak hours, those speeds were down a bit from 2011, though.)

Average Peak Period and 24-Hour Sustained Upload Speeds as a Percentage of Advertised, by Provider—April 2012 Test Data

During peak hours, upload speeds were 95% as good as advertised, while it was up to 107% on average. DSL, cable, and fiber services delivered performance of 103%, 110%, and 106%, respectively.